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EIT Food SPIN

SPIN project developing nutritional supplement to support immune system in the fight against infection by SARS-CoV-2.

The SPIN (SPermidin and eugenol INtegrator for contrasting incidence of coronavirus in EU population) is a European project powered by EIT Food that is currently developing a dietary supplement supporting the function of the immune system in the fight against SARS-CoV-2 infections in population at high risk. This food supplement has been formulated to be rich in the wheat germ polyamine, Spermidine, that plays a crucial role in favouring autophagy and a broad-spectrum antiviral essential oil, rich in Eugenol, which acts by decreasing viral ability of replication.

As a part of the EIT´s Crisis Response Initiative, this activity directly contributes to the European Union´s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The SPIN project is coordinated by the University of Bologna and participated by these key partners: IMDEA Food, Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Molino Naldoni, Targeting Gut Disease, and Xeda.

This supplement is intended to cover the timeframe in which the vaccine is not yet available to all and afterwards, to mitigate contagious and symptom severity with the use of a natural, antiviral approach. It is not intended to replace or enhance the vaccines that are currently in development.

The consortium is already working to identify the best available sources of raw materials for high Spermidine content (wheat germ) and eugenol (clove bud essential oil). The best active ingredient sources will be processed to obtain the final supplement that will be tested with different in vitro cellular models with the purpose of providing further scientific evidence for the protective role of the supplement.

Eugenol has proven to be a broad-spectrum antiviral compound with the potential capacity of inactivating different viruses, including coronavirus, and avoiding virus replication into host cells. Spermidine intake has been significantly associated with a reduced risk of death from all major causes. It acts through several mechanisms, including a crucial role in the autophagy pathway, tightly controlled by cellular metabolism.

It has been recently demonstrated that SARS-CoV-2 infection limits autophagy by interfering with multiple metabolic pathways, and that the presence of exogenous Spermidine reduces SARS-CoV-2 propagation in vitro. It would theoretically involve hindering or inhibiting the progression of the disease towards the more serious pulmonary forms, representing the existent mortality risk for those who contract SARS-CoV-2 and develop Covid-19.

This supplement represents an innovative strategy to help in the fight against the virus by using natural antiviral ingredients. For this reason, a pool of training programmes for dieticians and nutritionist will be organized in Poland, Spain and Italy to highlight the importance of food supplements for preventive purposes.

Pending the launch of an effective vaccine, it is necessary to enhance the immune system of the population, thereby reducing the number of infections and diminishing, in case of such, the severity of the symptoms.

Moreover, this supplement may prove to have a protective activity against other viruses such as influenza, which may also pose a threat of epidemic in the EU population.

For more information, please contact:

Natalia Drabińska, PhD; n.drabinska@pan.olsztyn.pl

About EIT Food

 

eitfood-logo
SPIN – SPermidin and eugenol INtegrator for contrasting incidence of coronavirus in EU population is a project under the support of EIT Food. EIT Food is Europe’s leading food innovation initiative, working to make the food system more sustainable, healthy and trusted.

The initiative is made up of an innovation community of key industry players across Europe, consisting of over 90 partner organisations and over 50 startups from 16 EU member states. It is one of the Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KIC) established by the European Institute for Innovation & Technology (EIT), an independent EU body set up in 2008 to promote innovation and entrepreneurship across Europe.

You can follow EIT Food via www.eitfood.eu or via social media: Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube or Instagram.



 

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Call for a position of LAB MANAGER in project SONATA BIS

Name of the Institute:

Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research of Polish Academy of Sciences

Name of the position:

LAB MANAGER in an NCN project SONATA BIS „Exploring mechanisms of congenital HCMV infection: replication, spread and latency establishment”

Project description:

Infection with human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a cause of congenital disease. As is the case for all the herpesviruses the life cycle of HCMV can be divided into lytic phase, when the virus is replicating, and the latent phase, in which virus persists in the cell. Part of the project focuses on molecular aspects of HCMV latency and its goal is to determine, if IE1x4 is the main protein of the latent phase responsible for persistence of the virus.

Thus far HCMV latency was mainly studied in hematopoietic progenitor cells, but recently it was shown that the virus can establish latency also in neuronal progenitors, discovery which is important in relation to HCMV-associated congenital disease. Therefore we would like to compare latent viral transcripts expressed in hematopoietic and neuronal progenitors. We also plan to study conditions and stage of differentiation at which neuronal progenitors become the reservoir of latent virus.

HCMV viral particles were shown to have distinct characteristics with regard to infection of and replication in different cell types, depending on the cell of the origin of the viral particle. Thus we intend to examine the influence of the type of virus producing cell on efficiency of infection of different target cells.

Project will combine methods of virology, cell and molecular biology. Following procedures will be used: infections, cloning, RNA sequencing, immunofluorescence staining, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), confocal microscopy and image quantification, chromosome spreads, sucrose gradients and primary cell isolation. Our main interest is to study the mechanisms of congenital infection with HCMV, therefore in majority of experiments two latency models will be used: well established model of hematopoietic progenitors (CD34+), as a control, and the neuronal precursor model, which is not fully established yet and has not been studied much. Part of the project is devoted to developing the neuronal precursor model. To that end we will use iPSC (induced pluripotent stem cells) obtained by reprogramming of fibroblasts.

Description of the position:

Candidate will participate in the following research tasks:

  1. Establishment of a protocol for reproducible differentiation of iPSC (induced pluripotent stem cells) into primitive pre-rosette neuronal stem cells and further into neurons;
  2. Identification of the differentiation stage of neuronal lineage cells, at which HCMV is able to infect them, replicate and establish latency;
  3. Investigation of the influence of the type of virus producing cell on efficiency of infection of different target cells.

Type of grant: Sonata BIS – NZ6

Deadline for job application: 22.09.2020, 23:59

Form of application: email

Conditions of work:

  1. Location of the work place: Zespół Patologii i Medycyny Translacyjnej Rozrodu – IRZiBŻ Olsztyn, ul. Bydgoska 7, POLAND;
  2. Date of beginning of the employment: 01.10.2020;
  3. Length of work contract: until 30.04.2023.

Qualifications:

  1. Masters or PhD in microbiology, biotechnology, biology or related discipline;
  2. Knowledge in the field of molecular and cellular biology;
  3. Knowledge in the field of virology or microbiology and in vitro cultures;
  4. Ability to use the following techniques: Western blot, PCR and immunofluorescence staining of proteins in the cell;
  5. Experience with cell differentiation or working with stem cells is advantageous;
  6. Ability to communicate easily in English;
  7. Ability to communicate well and work in a group.

Interested candidates are asked to provide the following documents:

  1. Motivation letter;
  2. CV including list of publications, conference presentations, membership in scientific organizations and other awards;
  3. MS degree certificate, PhD diploma or certificate of participation in studies at the moment;
  4. Recommendation letter from a scientific mentor, confirming skills necessary for completing the project;
  5. Other documents, that in the opinion of the candidate are important when considering him/her for the position.

Applications should be sent to:

Dr. Magdalena Weidner-Glunde
m.weidner-glunde@pan.olsztyn.pl
Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research of Polish Academy of Sciences
Department of Team of Reproductive Pathology and Translational Medicine
ul. Bydgoska 7, 10-243 Olsztyn
Poland.

Please include in your application the following, signed statement:

„I agree to the processing of personal data provided in this document for realising the recruitment process pursuant to the Personal Data Protection Act of 10 May 2018 (Journal of Laws 2018, item 1000) and in agreement with Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation)”.

Information clause

According to Art. 12 Para. 1 and 2 of the Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation- hereinafter referred to as GDPR), we would like to inform you that:

  1. The administrator of your personal data is the Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Olsztyn, 10 Tuwima Str., 10-748 Olsztyn, NIP 739-05-04-515, REGON 001289340, phone: +48 89 523 46 86, e-mail: instytut@pan.olsztyn.pl.
  2. You can contact our Data Protection Officer by e-mail: instytut@pan.olsztyn.pl.
  3. Your personal data will be processed on the basis of art. 6 par. 1 lit. a general regulation on data protection and the Labor Code – Act of June 26, 1974 (Journal of Laws of 2018, item 108) for recruitment to work at the Institute of Animal Reproduction and Food Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Olsztyn .
  4. Personal data will be kept during the recruitment period.
  5. You have the right to request the administrator to access your personal data, the right to rectify it, delete or limit the processing and the right to withdraw consent to its processing.
  6. You have the right to lodge a complaint with the supervisory body, the President of the Office for Personal Data Protection.
  7. Providing personal data is a statutory requirement and is mandatory due to the provisions of labor law, and is voluntary in the remaining scope.
  8. Your data will not be processed in an automated way.
  9. The provision of your personal data is voluntary, but the refusal to provide such data may result in the inability to attend the recruitment process.

The results of the competition will be available on the website:

https://pan.olsztyn.pl/institute/results-of-competitions

The recruitment rules for research positions are available at:

https://pan.olsztyn.pl/institute/hr-excellence-in-research

 

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